Verna R. Johnston's work has appeared in Audubon, The Christian Science Monitor, and The New York Times, as
well as in two earlier books. She taught biology at San Joaquin Delta College for thirty-seven years and now lives
in the midmountain forests of the Sierra Nevada. Carla J. Simmons is a freelance artist in the San Francisco Bay
Area.
Summary
From majestic Redwoods to ancient Western Bristlecone Pines, California's trees have long inspired artists,
poets, naturalists--and real estate developers. Verna Johnston's splendid book, illustrated with her superb color
photographs and Carla Simmons's detailed black-and-white drawings, now offers an unparalleled view of the Golden
State's world-renowned forests and woodlands.
In clear, vivid prose, Johnston introduces each of the state's dominant forest types. She describes the unique
characteristics of the trees and the interrelationships of the plants and animals living among them, and she analyzes
how fire, flood, fungi, weather, soil, and humans have affected the forest ecology. The world of forest and woodland
animals comes alive in these pages--the mating games, predation patterns, communal life, and the microscopic environment
of invertebrates and fungi are all here.
Johnston also presents a sobering view of the environmental hazards that threaten the state's trees: acid snow,
ozone, blister rust, over-logging. Noting the interconnectedness of the diverse life forms within tree regions,
she suggests possible answers to the problems currently plaguing these areas. Enriched by the observations of early
naturalists and Johnston's many years of fieldwork, this is a book that will be welcomed by all who care about
California's treasured forests and woodlands.